title: Multiple approaches and participation rate for a community based smoking cessation intervention trial in rural Kerala, India.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To illustrate multiple approaches and to assess participation rates adopted for a community based smoking cessation intervention programme in rural Kerala.
  
  
  METHODS
  Resident males in the age group 18-60 years who were 'current daily smokers' from 4 randomly allocated community development blocks of rural Thiruvananthapuram district, Kerala (2 intervention and 2 control groups) were selected. Smoking status was assessed through house-to-house survey using trained volunteers. Multiple approaches included awareness on tobacco hazards during baseline survey and distribution of multicolour anti-tobacco leaflets for intervention and control groups. Further, the intervention group received a tobacco cessation booklet and four sessions of counselling which included a one-time group counselling cum medical camp, followed by proactive counselling through face-to-face (FTF) interview and mobile phone. In the second and fourth session, motivational counselling was conducted.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among 928 smokers identified, smokers in intervention and control groups numbered 474 (mean age: 44.6 years, SD: 9.66 years) and 454 respectively (44.5 years, SD: 10.30 years). Among the 474 subjects, 75 (16%) had attended the group counselling cum medical camp after completion of baseline survey in the intervention group, Among the remaining subjects (n=399), 88% were contacted through FTF and mobile phone (8.5%). In the second session (4-6 weeks time period), the response rate for individual counselling was 94% (78% through FTF and 16% through mobile phone). At 3 months, 70.4% were contacted by their mobile phone and further, 19.6% through FTF (total 90%) while at 6 months (fourth session), the response rate was 74% and 16.4% for FTF and mobile phone respectively, covering 90.4% of the total subjects. Overall, in the intervention group, 97.4% of subjects were being contacted at least once and individual counselling given.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Proactive community centred intervention programmes using multiple approaches were found to be successful to increase the participation rate for intervention.
authors.affiliation: School of Health Sciences, Tampere, Finland and Regional Cancer Centre, Trivandrum, India. jaykrishnan999@gmail.com
authors.forename: Radhakrishnan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Jayakrishnan
authors.forename: Aleyamma
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mathew
authors.forename: Antti
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Uutela
authors.forename: Anssi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Auvinen
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sebastian
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D040421:Cell Phone; D003376:Counseling; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010349:Patient Compliance; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D012424:Rural Population; D012907:Smoking; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult